Using a legal lens to better understand and frame issues shaping the employment environment of non-tenure track faculty members

This article provides an overview and analysis of legal standards helping to shape the employment environment of non-tenure track faculty members. Familiarity with the significant differences in the types of employment arrangements for non-tenure track faculty and the resulting legal protections is of potential value to scholars seeking to better understand issues related to these faculty members. Many non-tenure track faculty members possess limited legal protections related to their employment, but a minority work under multiyear appointments with an expectation of renewal. The presence or absence of collective bargaining rights may also result in meaningful differences in the employment environment of non-tenure track faculty members. Additionally, the article examines the potential impact on non-tenure track faculty of legal uncertainty over First Amendment protection for individual academic freedom and other forms of professorial speech.